Little Miss Jackie

On Halloween, we got word of a friend looking for a quick home for a cat. Living out in the woods not far from us, this friend had spied a black cat wandering around her property for a few days. On the morning of Halloween she lured it right on in the front door. She could find no owner, and no shelters with room at the moment. A little "timid and wild" is what she said about it, and we thought, "Sure, why not? We'll take her!" We all think Piper misses having other kitties around, and surely she could use some help with the mouse population out in that barn. Not to mention the most important reality - there's plenty of extra cat lovin' to give around these parts.

By the next morning, this wild thing had warmed up enough, gotten comfortable, and wrapped itself right around its rescuer's neck, full of snuggles and gratitude. And the "cat"? Oh my, no. This "cat" turned out to be quite a kitten, she told us when we arrived. And so, with a little coercion, and thankfully no trauma, we packed the kitten up, gave our thank you's, and were on our merry way to our vet where this kitten got herself all checked out and we got the report that she was indeed no more than eleven weeks old, and not a bit over two and a half pounds, sweet pea.

And oh, this sweet pea! We all think she must have had quite a time of it before she was brought in on that stormy Halloween. Likely just dropped off there in those woods, we think. And who knows from where and for how long. She has been, since settling in here, quite simply exhausted from whatever it was that came before, and struggling, a little bit, with an infection. But she's going to be just fine - she just needs some meds and some time to rest and recover. Sleeping, sleeping, snuggling, snuggling. That's what she's doing for now, though I think it won't be long before she's joining the shenanigans all around this new home of hers.

Harper - with a birthday coming up and a wish for a cat - had the honor of naming her. "Halloween Kitty" was where he started. Followed by "Tootface Kittycat" (oh, five year old boys). But eventually, he made his way round to Jackie, in honor of Jack O' Lanterns and the Halloween day on which she was found. We think it suits her.

We have her set up in Adelaide's room (otherwise known at the Soule Veterinary Clinic), where we can close the door and get her feeling extra cozy and safe and away from the hubbub. It's a quiet little cat sanctuary in there, where each one of us sneaks in to just sit and hold and fall into the mellow zone of a cat with a purr louder than any I've ever heard. Oh, there's not much better than a sleeping kitten on your chest. Little Miss Jackie. She's a love.

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Little Miss Jackie

On Halloween, we got word of a friend looking for a quick home for a cat. Living out in the woods not far from us, this friend had spied a black cat wandering around her property for a few days. On the morning of Halloween she lured it right on in the front door. She could find no owner, and no shelters with room at the moment. A little "timid and wild" is what she said about it, and we thought, "Sure, why not? We'll take her!" We all think Piper misses having other kitties around, and surely she could use some help with the mouse population out in that barn. Not to mention the most important reality - there's plenty of extra cat lovin' to give around these parts.

By the next morning, this wild thing had warmed up enough, gotten comfortable, and wrapped itself right around its rescuer's neck, full of snuggles and gratitude. And the "cat"? Oh my, no. This "cat" turned out to be quite a kitten, she told us when we arrived. And so, with a little coercion, and thankfully no trauma, we packed the kitten up, gave our thank you's, and were on our merry way to our vet where this kitten got herself all checked out and we got the report that she was indeed no more than eleven weeks old, and not a bit over two and a half pounds, sweet pea.

And oh, this sweet pea! We all think she must have had quite a time of it before she was brought in on that stormy Halloween. Likely just dropped off there in those woods, we think. And who knows from where and for how long. She has been, since settling in here, quite simply exhausted from whatever it was that came before, and struggling, a little bit, with an infection. But she's going to be just fine - she just needs some meds and some time to rest and recover. Sleeping, sleeping, snuggling, snuggling. That's what she's doing for now, though I think it won't be long before she's joining the shenanigans all around this new home of hers.

Harper - with a birthday coming up and a wish for a cat - had the honor of naming her. "Halloween Kitty" was where he started. Followed by "Tootface Kittycat" (oh, five year old boys). But eventually, he made his way round to Jackie, in honor of Jack O' Lanterns and the Halloween day on which she was found. We think it suits her.

We have her set up in Adelaide's room (otherwise known at the Soule Veterinary Clinic), where we can close the door and get her feeling extra cozy and safe and away from the hubbub. It's a quiet little cat sanctuary in there, where each one of us sneaks in to just sit and hold and fall into the mellow zone of a cat with a purr louder than any I've ever heard. Oh, there's not much better than a sleeping kitten on your chest. Little Miss Jackie. She's a love.

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Greetings! I'm Amanda Blake Soule - mother of five, author of three books on family creativity, and editor-in-chief of Taproot Magazine. I live with my family in an old farmhouse in Western Maine where we raise animals, grow vegetables and make lots of things. I write about it all here on the blog. Thank you for visiting!